On the morning of June 4, at the Presidential Palace, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh chaired a solemn welcoming ceremony for Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who will pay an official visit to Vietnam from June 3 to 4, according to the protocol reserved for heads of foreign governments on official visits to Vietnam.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh welcomed Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese with a warm hug and handshake; Hanoi students presented Prime Minister Anthony Albanese with a bouquet of fresh flowers. The two Prime Ministers walked on the red carpet to the podium of honor amid the waving of students with colorful flags in their hands. When Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stepped onto the podium of honor, the national anthems of the two countries were played.
In a solemn atmosphere, the two leaders walked forward to salute the national flags of the two countries; Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh invited Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to inspect the Guard of Honour of the Vietnam People's Army. The two Prime Ministers introduced to each other the members of the high-ranking delegations of the two countries attending the welcoming ceremony.
At the end of the official welcoming ceremony, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese returned to the podium, witnessed the welcoming parade of the Vietnam People's Army Honor Guard; then the two Prime Ministers moved to the Government headquarters to hold talks.
This is the first official visit of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to Vietnam since taking office and just two months after the State visit to Vietnam by Australian Governor-General David Hurley; demonstrating Australia's importance in relations with Vietnam after 50 years of establishing diplomatic relations between the two countries (1973-2023).
Along with the talks with Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, during this visit, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will have meetings with General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, President Vo Van Thuong, and National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh will visit and exchange with the Australian and Vietnamese women's football teams.
Earlier, at noon on June 3, right after arriving in Hanoi, the Australian Prime Minister visited RMIT University and had lunch at a restaurant in Hanoi's Old Quarter; enjoying traditional Hanoi bread and draft beer - a familiar drink of the capital's people. On the morning of June 4, before attending the official welcoming ceremony, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and the Australian delegation laid a wreath and visited President Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum.
Vietnam and Australia established diplomatic relations in 1973. After 50 years, the strategic partnership between the two countries is developing increasingly substantive and effective. Many areas of cooperation mentioned in the Action Program for the period 2020-2023 have become pillars or bright spots in the bilateral relationship such as: Security - defense, economy - trade, science - technology, education - training, people-to-people exchange, etc.
In particular, economic and trade cooperation between the two countries is a bright spot, with two-way trade turnover in 2022 reaching nearly 15.7 billion USD, an increase of nearly 27% compared to 2021, making Australia the 7th largest trading partner of Vietnam and Vietnam the 10th largest trading partner of Australia.
With the signed Vietnam - Australia Economic Engagement Strategy (EEES), the two sides are making efforts to increase two-way trade and investment cooperation through effective measures; encouraging and facilitating businesses of the two countries to increase investment in each other.
The two sides continue to maintain trust, strengthen friendship, understanding and mutual respect through increasing delegation exchanges, high-level contacts and all-level contacts not only at the central level but also at the local level; promoting friendly exchange activities among all sectors of society. In particular, in Australia there is a Vietnamese community of over 300,000 people living, working and studying.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s visit to Vietnam is not only an opportunity for the two countries to review the achievements of the past 50 years of cooperation and look forward to the next 50 years of cooperation. During the visit, the leaders will discuss opportunities to elevate the bilateral relationship to a new level.
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